However, the paper and pulp sector suffered the heaviest losses, finishing down 0.8 percent.

Construction shares lost 0.6 percent, machinery and electronics also fell 0.6 percent, the financial sector dropped 0.2 percent, textiles edged down 0.2 percent and the plastics and chemicals sector was down 0.1 percent.

Meanwhile, transport stocks closed 0.4 percent higher because of the expected increase in cross-strait flights later this year and falling international oil prices.

However, electronics lost 0.66 percent because of concerns about weaker demand in the second half of this year.

SinoPac China office approved

Bank SinoPac (永豐銀行), a subsidiary of SinoPac Financial Holdings Co (永豐金控), received approval from the Financial Supervisory Commission and the China Banking Regulatory Commission in Beijing to set up a representative office in Nanjing, it said in a statement yesterday.

Local banks eye China deals

The boards of First Commercial Bank (第一銀行) and Jih Sun Securities Co (日盛證券), the banking and securities units of state-run First Financial Holding Co (第一金控) and Jih Sun Financial Holding Co (日盛金控) respectively, yesterday approved their plans to sign cooperation agreements with their Chinese peers, according to separate filings with the Taiwan Stock Exchange.

First Commercial Bank will enter into cooperation with China Merchants Bank (招商銀行), while Jih Sun Securities will join force with BOCI International China Ltd (中銀國際證券) for business and financial cooperation, the filings said.

The agreements still need approval from the Financial Supervisory Commission.

Mega Bank opens in Abu Dhabi

Mega International Commercial Bank (兆豐國際商銀), the banking arm of state-run Mega Financial Holdings Co (兆豐金控), yesterday opened a branch in Abu Dhabi to boost its presence abroad, the lender said in a statement.

The branch is Mega Bank’s 32nd foreign outlet and is intended to serve Taiwanese firms based in the United Arab Emirates’ second-largest city, the statement said.

HSBC partners with SABB

HSBC Holdings PLC, Europe’s biggest bank, will merge its Saudi Arabian wholesale and investment banking business with Saudi British Bank’s SABB Securities, it said yesterday.

SABB would own 51 percent of the new entity, to be known as HSBC Saudi Arabia, but HSBC would retain full management control, HSBC said in a statement posted on the Hong Kong stock exchange.

The merger was subject to regulatory approval and was expected to complete by the end of this year, HSBC added.

The partnership will be a full service investment bank in Saudi Arabia undertaking asset management, advisory and debt capital market activities among other services, HSBC said.

NT dollar falls against US dollar

The New Taiwan dollar fell against its US counterpart yesterday, down NT$0.048 to close at NT$29.010. Turnover totaled US$621 million during the trading session.

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